After arriving home from work, I was so down in the dumps. All my stress over the past few weeks had caught up with me. I sat in front of the computer screen with my head in my hands.

My husband proclaimed he didn’t think it was a good idea for me to work on the computer right after getting home from work. And yes, I was actually working on something; not just surfing the net, playing a game, or Facebooking.

He suggested a change of plans. Instead of running the distance we were supposed to tonight, we ran a fast mile. And instead of working on things at home, we got out of the house and relaxed at Starbucks.

Sure, there were a number of things we could have been working on at home. But every once in a while we need to be able to step back, recognize what in reality has to be done, and drop everything else. Take a break.

I know now that I needed one. I feel so much better. So why don’t you, go take a break?

It is an apartment; not a house. But that doesn’t make it any less special. Family members have lovingly provided a roof over our heads the past seven months; now we have our own place!

Getting an apartment, as opposed to a house, was slightly influenced by attending FPU. We want to be smart with our money. Even though we have enough money to get into the apartment, we don’t have enough yet to rent a U-Haul for all our stuff that is currently in storage. So, we’re going to temporarily make do. And fortunately for us, the couple that led our FPU small group is loaning us a set of pots and pans, and a few dishes. Otherwise, we have a couple camping chairs. And we’ll be sleeping on sleeping bags. I guess it’s a good thing we enjoy camping. And this has an upside–air conditioning and no bugs!

God’s Covenant

The most awesome part about yesterday…

When we stepped outside our apartment, there was a gigantic double rainbow right overhead. It reminded us of God’s promises: God loves us, and will be with us. A rainbow is one of the only natural phenomenon mentioned in the Bible, that God used specifically to signify a covenant, and intended as a reminder in the future that he always keeps his promises.

You know, I’ve always thought Dave Ramsey had good things to say, and his company promoted good ideas and values…. But I never really dove into his stuff.

Until now!

Last Sunday was our first FPU class. For those of you who don’t know, FPU stands for Financial Peace University. I don’t know about you, but financial peace sure sounds good to me!

The website makes it easy to find a local class. They’re usually hosted by churches. The classes last for thirteen weeks, a couple hours each. For the first hour, you watch Dave’s presentation of the lesson on dvd. For the second, you meet in a small accountability group.

This last Sunday’s lesson covered the Seven Baby Steps (click here to see a list of all the FPU classes)

FPU Kit

Step 1: $1,000 in an emergency fund ($500 if your income is under $20,000 per year)

Some people have commented that we don’t need a class like that–we handle our money so well. Some people tell us we need to take it. We decided since we’re in a transitional stage of life, trying to figure out how to financially handle living in a new area, it was a good time to get some education.

Have you heard of FPU before? Why did you or did you not take it? If you did, how has it impacted your life?

We still do not have a place to live. Though, we do have a prospect. We are looking at a renovation home. We do not know yet if it’s a go because there are a couple things that need to be checked out first, and renovation home loans take much longer to process than a regular home loan. But if it’s what God wants for us, it will work out.

Meanwhile, we will be moving out of my husband’s brother and sister-in-law’s finished basement. And moving in with my husband’s mom. This has definitely been a transitional stage of life. I don’t think anyone grows up saying, this is what I want to do when I grow up. But here we are. It’s definitely been an adventure. And we’re learning more and more how to lean on God and claim His promises each day!

We bought a house in June 2011. Our first home of our own. And because of circumstances I have written about in previous posts (see Changes In the New Year and Got Job?), we already need to sell it.

Almost every homeowner knows the kind of stress that can come with trying to sell a house. And understands the precarious balancing act of buying another at the same time.

Our current circumstance is a mixed blessing! We never had to put our house on the market. A family found out we were going to sell our house and approached us about doing a lease option. My husband drew up a contract, and it looks like all will benefit!

The “downside” is we have less than a month to find a place to live, and get all our stuff out. The past couple months we have looked at apartments, anywhere from studio to two bedroom, rental houses, and foreclosed homes. Nothing seems right yet. Either it’s too far away from work, too small, not safe enough, or not in our price range. Also, leasing our last house instead of directly selling it could affect our ability to be approved for a loan.

It’s tempting to think things won’t work out. But people go through these types of circumstances all the time. We just need to keep plowing ahead, looking at all our options, and what we need will pop up when we need it.